After decades of contamination concerns, the U.S. Navy officially launched its $46 million groundwater treatment facility at the former Northrop Grumman site in Bethpage on March 31. The Phase II Groundwater Treatment Plant on Union Avenue represents the latest effort to tackle the massive plume that's been threatening local drinking water supplies since defense contractors used industrial solvents there for years.
This isn't the Navy's first rodeo with Bethpage cleanup — they've been at it since the early 2000s when the extent of the contamination became clear. The plume stretches for miles underground, affecting parts of Nassau County's water supply. The new facility joins existing treatment operations as part of a multi-phase approach that's expected to run for decades.
The timing matters: with Long Island's water costs already among the nation's highest, any threat to the aquifer hits residents' wallets twice — first through cleanup costs, then through the need for alternative water sources. According to LI Press, this latest phase signals the Navy is serious about the long-term commitment this cleanup requires.
A convenience store in Deer Park sold the only second-prize Mega Millions ticket in New York state from Monday's drawing — worth a cool $2 million, according to Greater Long Island. That means someone walked out of a local store this week carrying a ticket worth more than most Long Island homes.
The winner matched five numbers but missed the Mega Ball in the April 7 drawing. While they didn't hit the $100 million jackpot, $2 million isn't exactly chopped liver — especially when the median home price in Deer Park hovers around $550,000. The New York Lottery hasn't identified which store sold the winning ticket yet.
Here's the thing: lottery winners have up to one year to claim their prize, but the sooner the better. After taxes, that $2 million becomes closer to $1.3 million — still enough to pay off a mortgage or fund a very comfortable early retirement. Someone's about to have a very good week.
You may remember this week's story about a licensed clinical social worker who tried to kidnap a 14-month-old baby from her stroller on a Long Beach sidewalk, according to police. It seems like the would-be kidnapper picked the wrong family to mess with — it was the baby's 79-year-old great-grandfather that tackled her and held her until cops arrived.
Heather Magone, the social worker now facing kidnapping charges, allegedly grabbed the stroller and tried to run off with the toddler in broad daylight. That's when great-grandpa stepped in with what police are calling a textbook takedown. The baby was unharmed, and Magone was arrested at the scene.
This happened on Monday afternoon on a busy Long Beach street — the kind of thing that makes you realize heroes come in all ages, and sometimes the most dangerous people have the most trusted job titles. Social workers are supposed to protect children, not snatch them from their families.
The Long Island Fairy Festival is back for its fourth year at Sands Point Preserve on Saturday, May 2, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. If you've never been, picture this: kids in tutus and wings running around one of Long Island's most beautiful estates while performers create "a world of wonder and imagination," according to LI Press.
Sands Point Preserve is already one of Nassau County's hidden gems — 216 acres of castles, gardens, and trails that feel like you've escaped to the Hamptons without the traffic or attitude. Adding fairy wings and theatrical performances? Your Instagram is going to thank you. Plus, it's one of those rare events where bringing a picnic blanket and letting the kids run wild is not just acceptable but encouraged.
Fair warning: if your kid goes, they're going to want fairy wings for the next six months. Consider yourself warned.
After more than 90 years as a family business, Clare Rose — the beer distributor whose trucks you've seen parked outside every decent bar and deli on Long Island — has agreed to be acquired by Southern Glazer's, according to Greater Long Island. Southern Glazer's is the world's largest alcohol distributor, the kind of company that makes Clare Rose look like a corner store.
For anyone who's worked in restaurants or just paid attention to who stocks the beer coolers, Clare Rose has been everywhere on the Island since the 1930s. They've survived Prohibition's end, countless recessions, and even the craft beer explosion that put a lot of regional distributors out of business.
The sale marks another Long Island institution absorbed by a corporate giant — think Fairway supermarkets or any number of family hardware stores that couldn't compete with Home Depot. Whether your local bar's beer selection stays the same or turns into whatever Southern Glazer's pushes nationwide remains to be seen.